Sony Pictures ‘The Interview’. Sony Interview.
After being pulled a few days prior to its launch due to a massive email hack, Sony Pictures’ controversial movie, ‘The Interview,’ had finally been released on Christmas Day with record breaking sales.
The comedy, starring James Franco and Seth Roger, depicts two journalists who snag the opportunity to interview the North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un and then were recruited by the CIA to assassinate him.
On December 23rd, Sony execs gave the approval to release the movie to a limited number of independent cinemas despite the fact that a group called the Guardians of Peace had threatened violence against moviegoers if the film made it to the box office.
President Barack Obama.
The decision had been finalized to release the move after President Barack Obama said Sony Pictures had “made a mistake” by initially deciding to pull the film. President Obama went on to note that “We cannot have a society in which some dictator some place can start imposing censorship here in the United States because if somebody is able to intimidate folks out of releasing a satirical movie, imagine what they start doing when they see a documentary that they don’t like, or news reports that they don’t like.”
North Korea Threat. Email Hacking.
North Korea denied being responsible for the massive hack of Sony Pictures’ emails, but said it could be “a righteous deed of the supporters and sympathizers” of the country.
Online Record Breaking Sales. Reality TV.
‘The Interview’ netted Sony Pictures more than $3 million on Christmas Day. And the controversial movie reached all-time online record sales grossing $15 million in purchases or rentals. This is by far the MOST successful Internet release ever!!
The public outcry regarding ‘The Interview’ is indeed what brought a lot of attention to the film. The record breaking sales might have not been achieved without all the publicity the movie received.
Call me cynical, or call me intuitive, but it appears that the marketing department at Sony Pictures is very sly like a fox. We are in an era where Reality TV is king because folks will do absolutely anything to get attention and make money. So why would it be of any surprise if Sony Pictures created the story to get exactly what it got – massive publicity for the film.
Do you feel the same or have another opinion? Share your comments. Until next time, I’m Attorney Francine Ward. Find me on my Facebook Law Fan Page, Twitter Law Page, Google+, and LinkedIn.